Union says DOT would save $90M by using state workers instead of consultants

Published 11:32 pm, Tuesday, June 5, 2012

ALBANY — The Public Employees Federation, one of the state's major unions, has long contended that it's cheaper to have state workers perform many tasks than it is to use outside consultants.

On Tuesday, the union focused on the state Department of Transportation, releasing a study PEF claims shows that "in-sourcing" much of the work done by consultants could save more than $90 million a year.

"Staffing levels at DOT have hit a historic low point, decreasing by more than 16 percent since 2008," said PEF President Ken Brynien, who believes the state could start saving money by bringing most bridge inspection work back in-house by the 2014-15 fiscal year.

The union's study, dubbed "The Road to Saving $90 Million," notes that consulting engineers for the Department of Transportation get an average hourly rate of $102 an hour, compared with the department's hourly rate of $58.36, including benefits.

Bridge inspection, said Brynien, "is one of the fastest-growing categories of DOT consultant spending and it is regularly scheduled routine work that our members can do at far less cost."

But the debate over which is more cost-effective — state employees or private contractors — has raged for years.

Those who support private contracting contend that it provides more flexibility for workers to be brought in as needed, rather than serve in a full-time capacity.

And a 2010 state Senate study on government efficiency, which used the removal of deer carcasses from roadways as a case study, pointed to DOT figures showing it was cheaper to use contractors for that particular task.

Considering salary and other requirements, removing a dead deer from the side of the road costs the state $145 dollars per carcass, while private contractors could do the job for $60, according to DOT figures.

PEF is hoping to resolve the years-long back-and-forth over contracting costs with proposed legislation. PEF supports a measure, already passed in the Democratic-led Assembly, that would require state agencies to conduct private-public cost comparisons.

The measure hasn't moved forward in the Republican-controlled Senate, however.